Wined and Died in New Orleans

by Ellen Byron

Ricki fled from Los Angeles to New Orleans to escape a past tarnished by her innocent association with a Ponzi scheme billionaire. Now connected with the Bon Vee Culinary House Museum, Ricki opens her own museum gift shop, Miss Vee’s Vintage Cookbook and Kitchenware Shop.  She purchases old cookbooks and kitchen tools for resale in her shop.

The plot centers around a murder. Ricki leads friends who are also her co-workers at the museum in trying to solve the case. She feeds any information she discovers to Nina, a local detective with whom she “collaborated” on a previous case. The plot is good and has plenty of complications and surprises involving some very old wine discovered on the property. Suddenly the family tree expands as people claiming to belong to the Charbonnets descend on Louisiana in hopes of a share of wealth and fame. Also the reader gets a taste of Louisiana from references to food, dialect, and an impending hurricane. 

I have enjoyed other books by Ellen Byron with a Louisiana setting, but this one does not appeal to me and is definitely not a page turner. I didn’t identify or empathize with any of the characters. Ricki and her friends/coworkers seem to go round and round in their efforts to discover the murderer. Ricki has a revelation of a personal nature that is an interesting twist. Ricki and her neighbor, Chef Virgil, are co-parents of two dogs, making the potential for interesting scenarios which never develop. The dogs have very minor roles.

I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Rating: 3/5

Category:  Mystery

Notes:  1. The author provides a list of characters at the first of the book which helps orient the reader.

    2. This is the second book in the Vintage Cookbook Mystery Series. I have not read the first book in the series, but I don’t think that affected my reflections on this cozy mystery.

    3. There is a recipe section describing selected vintage cookbooks and any information about them that emerged during the author’s research. She also chose a recipe from each book to add to that section.

Publication: February 7, 2023—Berkley

Memorable Lines:

“You need a drink.”  “Everyone keeps liquoring me up. Is a drink New Orleans’s answer to everything?”  “Pretty much.”

“I guess you could call me a California Charbonnet. Kind of like a California chardonnay but with notes of murder and bizarre family dynamics.”

“Sam’s on the Crisis Negotiation Team. I din’t pass the training. Apparently, sarcasm isn’t perceived as an ‘effective oral communication skill.’ “